


You Make Me Smile

by DelightfulLittleGay



Series: College! [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, And Hinata too, Bottom Hinata Shouyou, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, But the tail end of it, Falling In Love, First semester story, Fluff and Angst, Gay Aone Takanobu, Gay Hinata Shouyou, Happy Fourth, Hinata is also a bit of a size queen, Implied/Referenced Sex, Kenma Lev and Inuoka are there, Kissing is so sweet honestly, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, One Shot, POV Third Person Limited, Please protect our dear Aone Takanobu, Size Difference, Terushima pops up in another blink and you miss him way, This fic is soft and tender, Top Aone Takanobu, Unlike Futakuchi ROTFL, Volleyball Dorks in Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-06-09 15:03:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19478359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DelightfulLittleGay/pseuds/DelightfulLittleGay
Summary: "This was nice, cuddling in the early morning like this. Takanobu felt the most at peace here. He didn’t need to worry about how intimidating he looked to the rest of the world, how hard it would be to work with another student in class who wouldn’t talk to him. Here, with his boyfriend nuzzled into his body like it was the best pillow in the world, he didn’t have to fear anything. He was loved by someone, and that someone wouldn’t leave his side."Shoyo makes Takanobu smile.





	You Make Me Smile

**Author's Note:**

> And we're back in the college AU world! I fell in love with Aone when I watched "Haikyu," and I really adore the Aone x Hinata rarepair, so here we go! This was a joy to write. I love soft and pure gay boys with some mild sexual content (the true first of the AU! Yay!). This is probably refreshing coming off of my KiriBaku smut LOL.
> 
> The title is grabbed from Colbie Caillat's "Bubbly," a true aughts love song classic.

As soon as Takanobu woke up, Shoyo was there.

Takanobu smiled as his fingers threaded through Shoyo’s fluffy orange hair, his other hand rubbing reassuring circles on the freshman’s back. Shoyo mumbled a little, snuggling closer into Takanobu’s chest. Takanobu stifled a laugh as he felt Shoyo’s cheek tickle against the hair on his pec.

This was nice, cuddling in the early morning like this. Takanobu felt the most at peace here. He didn’t need to worry about how intimidating he looked to the rest of the world, how hard it would be to work with another student in class who wouldn’t talk to him. Here, with his boyfriend nuzzled into his body like it was the best pillow in the world, he didn’t have to fear anything. He was loved by someone, and that someone wouldn’t leave his side.

Shoyo started out as one of those scared of him, though. They had a Biology lecture and lab together this semester. They sat next to each other in class and were partners in lab, and when Shoyo had first looked him in the eyes, he had startled, hands flailing before settling in clenched fists at his sides, gaze locked on the table like it was the most interesting thing he’d ever seen. Takanobu understood why; the guy was a foot shorter than him, shorter than most people Takanobu knew, but he still towered over others, severe brown eyes cutting into people even though he never intended to. Maybe they were a little more sharp than usual because he had just broken up with his boyfriend and current roommate.

It wasn’t that Kenji was a horrible boyfriend. Sure, he was snide and teased people way too much, but he had a heart beneath his snake-like exterior. Freshman year had taught that to Takanobu. When they moved into their dorm before the school year started, though, things didn’t feel right. They had been on the floor, making out and running their fingers across each other’s backs when Kenji had moaned, “Just like that, Master, touch me just like that.”

Takanobu froze. The connotation of that word, _Master_ , made him want to shed his skin, crawl under a pile of rocks and never see the sun again. He knew Kenji could feel him tense, and when Kenji’s kisses were no longer being reciprocated, he looked up at Takanobu and cocked his head. “What’s wrong?”

Takanobu brought his head down, gaze directed at the carpet beneath him and his roommate. He tried to think of anything he could say to Kenji, but he was coming up short. He gnawed at his lip.

“Take your time,” Kenji whispered. He pulled away from Takanobu, sitting up and wrapping his arms loosely around his legs. Takanobu reached for his discarded shirt, rubbing his fingers against the fabric. It soothed him a little, and then he was able to find an explanation.

“There’s something about that title,” he said. “It’s not me. I know I’m tall and burly, and people want me and others like me to be dominant. But that’s not who I am. I’m sorry.”

Admitting that filled Takanobu with shame, but he couldn’t imagine playing into what Kenji envisioned and what other people expected of him. He didn’t want to hurt others, especially not himself. He felt like his heart was made of Jell-O sometimes, and one knife to the chest, self-inflicted or not, would puncture him. Nobody thought the intimidating glarer had a care in the world. But Takanobu did; maybe that was a problem in the eyes of others, but to him, it was his lifeline.

Kenji sighed. “That’s fine. But you should know that once I get like this with a guy, I can’t stop. I like it hard, I like it rough. If you can’t supply that, I’ll find someone else. Okay?”

Takanobu flinched a little at those words, but he sucked in a breath through his nose regardless and nodded.

“Hey, we can still be friends,” Kenji said. “We’re gonna have to be roommates for a whole year. Might as well. So don’t worry about it, okay?” He smiled, tapping Takanobu’s arm with a toe. “Burrowing into yourself won’t do you any favors.”

But Takanobu didn’t know what else to do, so he disregarded Kenji’s advice and spent the first few weeks of school lost in his head, not caring about how he looked. He was just making it through.

So he was surprised when a month into lab, the short orange-haired guy who flinched every time they worked together asked him a question that took him aback. “Do you hate me?”

Shoyo’s voice sounded so small, so scared, and Takanobu was kicking himself internally for forgetting how angry he looked without thinking about it. He felt his ears burn as he shook his head, eyes focusing on Shoyo’s fingers as they fiddled with his jacket zipper.

“Sorry if that was a presumptuous question,” Shoyo said. “It’s just that…you look really angry every time I see you, and I’m not sure if it’s because of me or if it’s natural or what.”

“It’s not you,” Takanobu whispered, and he could hear Shoyo let out a noise as he started to pack his backpack. Takanobu’s voice surprised a lot of people, especially once they realized he actually talked. “I’m still reeling over a break-up. Don’t worry.”

“Oh, okay,” Shoyo replied. He hoisted his own backpack over his shoulders and cocked his head, thumb rubbing a circle into one of the straps. “Good to hear. I mean, not because of the break-up, but because you’re not mad at me. Sorry. That sounded selfish. And mean.”

Takanobu shook his head, putting on his backpack as his gaze went to Shoyo’s eyes, a warm hazel.

Shoyo grinned. “I have an idea. You know that coffee shop across the street?”

Takanobu nodded.

“You wanna go there and talk, get to know each other?” Shoyo asked, angling his body toward the lab door. “We can clear the air that way.”

“Sure,” Takanobu said. He followed Shoyo out into the crisp fall afternoon, and from there, they bought croissants and hot apple cider and talked about what they wanted out of their lives. Shoyo shared his dream of becoming an elementary school teacher so he could help kids like his little sister, Natsu. Takanobu saw photos of her, a mirror image of Shoyo, hair cut short in that scraggly and windswept way, eyes just as bright. She was adorable, just like him. Takanobu reciprocated, revealing that he wanted to pursue astronomy, a photo with a poster about gravitational force he had presented at a science event the previous year punctuating that.

“But they don’t offer a major for that here, do they?” Shoyo picked up his croissant and devoured half of it in one bite. As he chewed, he kept talking. “What are you studying?”

“Physics.” Takanobu tore off a thin piece of flaky pastry, rolling it around his fingers as he thought. “It’ll help with the theoretical aspect of it all: gravity, stardust, and electromagnetism. I love all that stuff.”

Shoyo started giggling, and when Takanobu refocused, Shoyo slapped his hand over his mouth and said, “Oh, I wasn’t laughing at you! The crumb you’re holding is tiny compared to your hand. It’s a funny contrast.”

Takanobu considered this, spending a few seconds staring right at the flake, then he chuckled, sipping his cider, nose resting against the whipped cream.

Every Tuesday afternoon following that late September lab, Shoyo and Takanobu would walk to that café, getting a baked good and cider or hot chocolate depending on their moods. It seemed like every time they plopped down on a wooden chair, they had something new to talk about: friends, classes, and even their sexualities. One of these visits focused on Shoyo combing through a gay dating app he was on, looking through the messages he had received recently. Takanobu saw a dick pic in one of the chats, the glint of a Prince Albert piercing capturing the glare of a phone’s flash from its position on the head of a penis. He tried his best not to flush. It was futile.

“Maybe it’s too much right off the bat to show you this,” Shoyo admitted, turning off his phone and putting it back into his pocket. “But now you know what I like, so it’s a start. What do you like, Takanobu?”

Takanobu stared at his hands, clasped in his lap. “Not sure.”

“What do you mean?” Shoyo asked, grabbing his hot chocolate and taking a sip. “I feel like you’ve been with a few guys. Aren’t there things you like?”

Well, yes, but…. When Takanobu got to know a guy who wasn’t scared of him, they expected something out of him, much like what Kenji had. They wanted a boy who used his musculature to his advantage, rough and tumble and quick to dominate and throw someone around. But Takanobu didn’t want that, and he was scared that judging from all that Shoyo had shown him, that’s what Shoyo wanted. He liked the softer side of love, the tender kisses and long embraces and nights that seemed to go by in slow motion. Yet when his eyes closed to receive a kiss, his partner wanted bites, spankings, pinned arms, pounding, everything that made Takanobu flinch.

That, and there was another thing: Takanobu was a virgin. He hadn’t shown any guy what he kept beneath the belt buckle and zipper, and he had measured it before to find that it was…well, bigger than the average one in pretty much every possible way. And it’s not like he hated the idea of getting naked with a guy he liked; he wanted to at some point, when the feeling was right and he was comfortable with it. He had even masturbated envisioning that perfect scenario. But he knew that as soon as someone pulled down his underwear, they would hop onto him and beg Daddy to fuck them harder. It was the absolute worst case scenario.

So he shrugged as he mumbled, “Dates. Kissing. I haven’t done much, so…”

“Oh!” Shoyo clapped a hand over his mouth. “Sorry! I assumed something about you again. That’s not fair of me!” He turned bright red, fingers scrabbling against the back of his head. “I’m just so open about my sexuality and being a bottom who likes what a guy works with and you seem a little like that guy for me. I mean, you are a top, right?”

Takanobu found himself bringing out his hands from underneath the table and giving Shoyo a thumbs-up.

“Okay,” Shoyo breathed, bunching up in his chair. “God, I’m so stupid! Why did I alienate you?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Takanobu replied. “I’m used to it.”

“You shouldn’t be,” Shoyo cried, and Takanobu’s eyes widened. He drank from his cocoa to fully let Shoyo’s words settle. He was right. Takanobu shouldn’t be used to something that was unfair to him, especially when it hurt every single time.

“Thanks,” Takanobu whispered.

Shoyo uncurled, staring Takanobu right in the eyes with a different kind of look that Takanobu had never seen before. It was an intensity that pierced his daze, held his attention. “I want to make this up to you. Can we go on a date?”

Takanobu blushed, clearing his throat and taking another drink from his mug. The idea sounded nice. He had really gotten to know Shoyo through these conversations, and this small orange-haired boy was honest, charming, and so full of energy that it made Takanobu want to understand him more, imagine him with rose-colored glasses that he could take off and discover that the tint had been in his life all along.

So Takanobu smiled, set his hand in the middle of the table, and said, “Sure.”

That weekend, Shoyo and Takanobu went to a Chuck E. Cheese that smelled like greasy pizza and was filled with the screams of dedicated kids. Shoyo bought enough tokens so both of them could play everything they wanted; most of them went to air hockey, Shoyo and Takanobu hogging the machine until a mom and her kids came up to them, arms crossed over her chest as one of her little boys sucked his thumb and pointed at the striker in Takanobu’s grasp.

Takanobu won the most matches, though, so he wasn’t complaining.

They didn’t get many tickets, but Takanobu was still able to afford a Ring Pop, which he gifted to Shoyo, who squealed like a kid on Christmas. He was licking it even as Takanobu ordered pizza and soda for the two of them. Then when it actually came time for dessert, Shoyo decided to buy himself and Takanobu a box of special churros the place was selling. They ate on the walk back to campus, and when Takanobu caught some pink sugar stuck to the edge of Shoyo’s lip when they walked under a streetlight, he pointed at it before swiping it away.

Shoyo stopped then, and Takanobu walked forward a few more steps before he realized what was going on. He looked back at Shoyo, head cocking over his shoulder. A tense moment of silence passed between them before Shoyo took in a breath, ran forward, and leapt onto his tiptoes, placing a kiss on Takanobu’s lips. Takanobu could taste the sugar left from the churros as his hand moved to rest against Shoyo’s neck. Shoyo separated and let out a shout as he lost his balance, but Takanobu caught him, moving an arm to wrap around his back. After that, they walked the rest of the way with their fingers intertwined.

That first date led to many, restaurant trips and movie marathons and study sessions, and the more time Takanobu spent with Shoyo, the more he fell in love with him. Shoyo was sweet like the ice cream cones he hesitantly licked from during the summer, and whenever Takanobu had to think about what to say, Shoyo was patient, sometimes rubbing small circles on Takanobu’s hand. Every hangout they had would get off the rails at some point, a random fact or moment causing Shoyo to spout an observation that would lead to a discussion, Takanobu nodding and responding while cuddling against Shoyo’s hair. He appreciated Shoyo’s voice, the high and melodic timbre he took to words that always reassured Takanobu no matter his mood.

Their friends were pretty nice about the whole thing, too. Shoyo’s roommate was fine with it (this was because of his own kind-of boyfriend, Shoyo reported), and his crew of the guy burrowed in his DS, the aspiring veterinarian, and the skinny gray-haired lightning rod that was an inch taller than Takanobu were their own brand of excitement that Takanobu found comforting.

Takanobu’s friends were a little different. Kenji gave one look at Shoyo before his eyes narrowed, smirk following not long after as he teased Shoyo about his height. When Shoyo left, Kenji shrugged and went, “I see it, but he seems kind of annoying. Good for you, though.” Takanobu shook his head and then proceeded to introduce Shoyo to Kanji, a boy that Takanobu knew from an English class, who drove Kenji up the wall and actually admitted to liking Shoyo. Then he blurted out having a crush on Kenji. Takanobu left Kenji to deal with that.

Then there were the moments when kissing led to making out to throwing clothes off. Unsurprisingly, Shoyo had been ecstatic when he had pulled Takanobu’s boxers down to see his penis. But rather than jump on it, he asked Takanobu what he wanted him to do, and that question was enough for Takanobu to trust him in watching him jerk off, grabbing a box of tissues and pulling one out when he climaxed. Shoyo did the same, going a step further and fingering himself while Takanobu set a hand on his leg. They had gone further than that, but Takanobu knew both of them would have to work at anal penetration for a little bit longer because of his size. But Shoyo was patient because he knew Takanobu wasn’t some one-time affair, and he told Takanobu as much. Takanobu repaid the favor with his mouth and a few muttered words as he and Shoyo settled into his bed, right before the start of semester break. Kenji was out with Kanji, surprisingly, so they had the room to themselves.

That’s where Takanobu woke up to Shoyo burrowing into his chest, his fingers in orange hair and against a slender back. Shoyo murmured one last time before waking up, eyes fluttering open as he smiled. He kissed Takanobu’s pec. “Good morning,” he said.

“Morning,” Takanobu whispered, and just like that, his smile got bigger, all because of his beautiful boyfriend.

Life was perfect.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! If you liked this fic, kudo, bookmark, add it to a collection, or leave a comment. Whichever method you prefer.
> 
> I'll be taking a break for the rest of the month so I can work on some personal projects, including revision for what I'd like to be my debut novel and a play adaptation project I really want to start. I've sown some of the seeds for the next fics, so hopefully you'll see those soon! Stay tuned!


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